The Beauty of Grit
If you’ve ever been to the beach, you know that sand gets absolutely everywhere and infiltrates everything. When you return home, some of those pesky grains of sand have invited themselves to come with you. No matter how you try to contain it, sand finds its way into your bathing suit, into your shoes, and into your car…and somehow into your house. Sand is irritating. It’s rough, it’s coarse, and it’s abrasive...and it’s exactly what you need to create a pearl. The beauty of one of nature’s most precious gems is the direct result of the oyster’s response to irritation and difficulty.
How do you respond to moments of irritation? Is it with gratitude? For most of us, probably not. In our own humanity, it is absolutely impossible to see seasons of adversity as a positive force in our lives…but with the power and partnership of the Holy Spirit, we can find hope in these seasons to persevere and be transformed, just like a grain of sand transforms into a pearl.
This simple illustration has powerful spiritual implications for believers, and in her latest book, "Grit Don't Quit," Bianca Juárez Olthoff offers a compelling exploration of perseverance, hope, and personal transformation. She reframes the concept of grit as the determination to persist through challenges and setbacks, and it is this cultivation of grit that can lead to profound growth and positive change.
We all encounter moments of difficulty and adversity, whether through external circumstances over which we have little control or through the consequences of our own choices. It is essential that we persevere during such times, but from where do we gather the strength to keep going? Perseverance is found in our hope, a hope that is not merely wishful thinking, but rather a steadfast belief rooted in faith and anchored in a future guided by God.
Through her exploration of the life of Paul, Bianca Juárez Olthoff showcases how grit was the driving force behind his transformation from a judgmental Pharisee to a devoted follower of Jesus who played a pivotal role in shaping Christianity. By drawing parallels between Paul's journey and the challenges individuals face today, she offers practical insights into developing resilience, rebounding from losses, and growing stronger: emotionally, mentally, and spiritually.
We will all suffer at some moment in our lives, and we must be prepared to suffer well and to suffer joyfully. It’s vital to have a God-honoring theology on the topic of suffering rather than blissfully ignoring it and hoping that suffering won’t knock on the door of our hearts – because it will. It surely will.
“What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who is against us?” Romans 8:31.
God will never leave you or forsake when your life has gone up in smoke and when you are tormented for righteousness’ sake. The promise that the Holy Spirit made to the early church is your promise today as well. I have found over the course of my life that times of undeserved and cruel suffering often come with invitations. How you respond to these divine invitations is up to you.
One of the sterling lessons discovered in the invitation of suffering is that we must not be dependent upon the blessing of people but upon the blessing of the Father. This is a New Testament promise, my friend, when you suffer for the sake of righteousness, God always responds with a blessing.
You will have to persist in the struggle, as I have, to discern God’s will in the mystery of suffering. I have grappled with this enigma nearly my entire adult life through my experiences of suffering, by reading the views of the great theologians, by asking men and women who are much wiser than I what their views are, and, of course, by spending time in the matchless Word of God.
Thanks for listening to my heart this week. As you know by now, my heart is truly not a perfect heart but it is a heart that is filled to overflowing with gratitude for the life I have been given and for the people who walk with me. And, it continues to be a heart that is relentlessly chasing after God and all that He is!